I was reading through Acts 5 today (M’Cheyne) and honed in on the latter half of the chapter where the apostles were going around doing “many signs and wonders,” thrown in jail by the religious leaders, freed by a messenger, and teaching again in the temple. Throughout this narrative, I noted that the people “held them [the apostles] in high esteem,” and the guards approached the apostles “without violence, for they were afraid of being stoned by the people.”
This piqued my interest. This is not how I often think about the people’s perception of the teachings of the faith. Growing up, I was often reminded that Christians are to be different. Jesus taught:
“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything but is thrown out and trampled under foot.”
If we are just like everybody else… if we please the world… we’re no good!
Why is the message that the church proclaims today not celebrated? It’s no longer highly esteemed. When I think about the public perception of the Christian faith, it is… let’s just say it’s not positive. We’re associated with outdated cultural mores, intolerance, dogmatism, hypocrisy. I doubt the apostles were going around proclaiming such teachings.
It was good news!
The people wanted to hear it.
—
Now I know the critique that quickly comes when one starts thinking this way: “You just want to cater to the world’s desires.” Well, no. God shows us what is good and the Spirit helps us discern the will of God.
Somehow the narrative I received in the church is that the faith is about what we’re AGAINST. Everything is culture war. We need to be weary of the _________ agenda. etc. But Jesus often showed us a faith that is what we are FOR. The great commandments were not stated as negatives, but positives. We are to love. The world will know us by our love.
It’s his kindness that leads us to repentance. Not repent, or else! The gospel is one of extravagant love lavished upon undeserving people. It is grace.
I highly doubt that being “cut to the heart” was an expression for a fear-based response. It was a conviction that can only come by grace.
I’m inclined to believe that the apostles taught about love and grace in the temple courts. It upended the control and power structures. It put the authorities on edge.
I wonder what the church would look like today living into this message to the world. The love and grace of God is the “open secret” (in Newbigin’s words) of the Christian faith. It is a public faith — a proclamation of grace that we expect the world to rejoice over, not a system of doctrine that needs our apologetic defense. Can the church come back from all that we’ve become tangled up in and be “held in high esteem” again?